Another full day at Origins and it will be our last day since we need to get back to Chicago early Sunday. I missed some chances to play in some different games but was able to still squeeze in some fun nonetheless. First, I realized that I hadn't taken any pictures of the Exhibition Hall so I did a quick run snapping pictures along the way. It gave me a chance to learn more about Settlers of Catan from Mayfair Games. I looked for some HeroClix and books for Bessey but didn't find what he was looking for. (Sorry Brian!). I looked at this great game from Atlas Games called "Ren Faire" which is a cool card game with transparent cards. I also talked to the creator of a card supplement to D&D that creates random encounters and adventures. Interesting but a bit on the rough side. I also talked with our friends at Dwarven Forge and scoped out some of their products I might need later in the summer. GenCon perhaps? Finally, I made my way back to Catalyst Games and my "Purchase of the Con".
My best purchase of the convention is NOT a role playing game! It is "Dogfight" from Bucephalus Games. This came out last year but didn't really get much coverage until this year. It is what I am dubbing a "gateway drug for Aerodrome 2.0". It is a four piece wooden board with hexagons. When in the box, these boards hold the game pieces between them, locked in place by wooden dowels and magnets. Put them together and you have the gameboard and backdrop for six tiny metal WWII airplanes and stands. The rules are simple: it's kind of like checkers and if you shoot down six planes, you win. It is simple and beautiful but most of all, it was cheap! I got it for HALF OFF because I'm an educator. Woo hoo! Next time you are at my place, ask me about it and we'll play a quick game.
(Pat just called to tell me about a new Rush documentary. Cool.)
As for my day in gaming, I tried to get into a Dungeon Delve in the RPGA hall but no one else was available. I could have played in a four hour long pick up game but decided I'd rather watch the US lose in the World Cup. Dang. In the end, I decided to jump into that great Pirates game being played on the diorama with the volcano. It turned into a two hour game! We each got a closed pack of Spanish Main and started at one end of the board in a neutral zone. Our goal was to acrue as many points from treasure as possible in two hours. At the far end of the board was an island with Aztec gold. If we docked at this island we could get another pack and bring on those ships back at the docks. It was also a Sargasso Sea design so we could sail off the board in a couple of places and randomly pop out the other side. He included a few special event coins to shake things up. And then there was the volcano! When the initiative got back to the GM, he randomly rolled to see if they volcano erupted. If it did, ships within the blast zone would lose masts and possibly be destroyed. It also changed the prevailing winds, which really impacted game play. As soon as my two ships got to their first islands, my large ship picked up a cursed token that made me an enemy of the crown, which meant the person who sank me got 10 points. Everyone went after me! Then right as this guy had made my ship derelict and just before my turn, the GM rolled and the volcano exploded, destroying my ship so he couldn't get the 10 points. Brilliant!! Well, my little two mast ship plugged along, made it to the Aztec island, allowed me to bring on two more ships, and on the very last turn, one of those ships found a 10 point gold piece. So I ended up in a solid second place! I also got to keep the ships. It was a lot of fun on a great, great game board.
After dinner, I went to the Origins Award ceremony. I had voted earlier in the day so I was curious to see who won. HeroClix Hammer of Thor won top Miniatures Figure line and a game called "Poo" won best Card Game. I didn't know all the games but it was great to see GAMA handing out these awards to game designers. It reminded me a lot of the days of ROTU. It was a good way to end the day and the convention.
Saturday, June 26, 2010
Friday, June 25, 2010
Origins 2010 Friday Report!
Before I give the report, let me comment on this whole blog/photo gallery thing. So since I have some time on my hands, I decided to use my laptop and Google to update my friends and family about my trip and to start writing some more. It has certainly taught me much about Google, Picasa, Blogger, and my iPhone. I don't quite have the hang of it so let me know if you get this.
In the meantime, I THINK I am posting a daily blog and using Picasa's sync function to keep the slideshow on this page updated with new photos from the convention. I am also putting caption with each picture.
On with today's report!
Today was a quiet one for me. Basically, I'm exhausted from work so I used this opportunity to sleep uninterrupted for seven hours and take it easy. Since I did so much on Thursday, that was fine with me! Mark and I swung through the Exhibition Hall for awhile. We saw a pretty cool piece of software called d20Pro (http://www.d20pro.com/) and walked through the RPGA Hall. I plan on visiting Saturday and try and play. Did I mention Battletech Video Game Pods are back? They are here and the graphics look great. I almost jumped in a pod tonight! I tried to play a demo of Settlers of Catan but it was packed. I picked up a CD of background music and sound effects - I heard a podcast review of it before so I'm glad I spotted the booth and was able to meet the owners. I also picked up some gifts for the girls.
OH! I also went to Krema Candy and got myself a homemade chocolate shake and a gourmet peanut butter and jelly sandwich for lunch. I headed outside to get some fresh air and get out of the AC. This was the same place Hayes and I went to five year ago and was featured on Food Network. It was as good as I remembered. I made sure to email Hayes to rub it in.
At this point, I think I'm done with my purchases but am tempted by a few things I may pick up at GenCon. Well, I'm disappointed that Alea Games is not here since I really wanted to buy some metal bases for my miniatures. I am VERY tempted by the deal at Reaper. Half of my paints are dried up and Reaper has a great convention deal that would include 45 paints of my choosing, a plastic organizer and carrying case. I almost bought a little wooden laser-cut sloop. I think they sold the last one today. I really like a couple of games from Atlas games and I almost bought Munchkin. One of these days...
Mark had to work Aerodrome at 11 am and then had to run a game on his own at 7 pm so I did some school work in the room and figured this blog thing out till 6 pm and then I helped Mark get all the planes and gear down to the gaming hall, which is where all my photos have come from so far. I waited around to see if Mark had any open seats and he was packed so I zipped over to this game I wanted to try out and found lots of open seats. So I gave them my $2 game token and sat down.
This game session was called "Monster Mash" and is a modified version of the 3.5 Miniatures game updated to 4E. The group running it is called Red Shirt Games. Each of us got three random monster cards and minis and our goal was to beat the crap out of each other till there was one monster standing. I got a Thrask, a Marileth, and Drizz't and Guenhwyvar. We each put our monsters in separate rooms and started moving. Luckily, I rolled pretty well and made a few good choices by going after a newbie's monsters. In the end, I was the last person standing against one of the guys who designed the game mod. Before we entered the final melee, the GM gave me a prize token for winning the game. Well, the other guy actually beat me by one point in the end but he couldn't with any prizes. I got a free pack of dice from GameScience. Cool.
Well, it's 11 pm and Mark isn't back yet. I think I'll head down and help him carry the stuff back. Tomorrow, I plan on playing a few more games. I also want to go to the Ennies at 7 pm.
In the meantime, I THINK I am posting a daily blog and using Picasa's sync function to keep the slideshow on this page updated with new photos from the convention. I am also putting caption with each picture.
On with today's report!
Today was a quiet one for me. Basically, I'm exhausted from work so I used this opportunity to sleep uninterrupted for seven hours and take it easy. Since I did so much on Thursday, that was fine with me! Mark and I swung through the Exhibition Hall for awhile. We saw a pretty cool piece of software called d20Pro (http://www.d20pro.com/) and walked through the RPGA Hall. I plan on visiting Saturday and try and play. Did I mention Battletech Video Game Pods are back? They are here and the graphics look great. I almost jumped in a pod tonight! I tried to play a demo of Settlers of Catan but it was packed. I picked up a CD of background music and sound effects - I heard a podcast review of it before so I'm glad I spotted the booth and was able to meet the owners. I also picked up some gifts for the girls.
OH! I also went to Krema Candy and got myself a homemade chocolate shake and a gourmet peanut butter and jelly sandwich for lunch. I headed outside to get some fresh air and get out of the AC. This was the same place Hayes and I went to five year ago and was featured on Food Network. It was as good as I remembered. I made sure to email Hayes to rub it in.
At this point, I think I'm done with my purchases but am tempted by a few things I may pick up at GenCon. Well, I'm disappointed that Alea Games is not here since I really wanted to buy some metal bases for my miniatures. I am VERY tempted by the deal at Reaper. Half of my paints are dried up and Reaper has a great convention deal that would include 45 paints of my choosing, a plastic organizer and carrying case. I almost bought a little wooden laser-cut sloop. I think they sold the last one today. I really like a couple of games from Atlas games and I almost bought Munchkin. One of these days...
Mark had to work Aerodrome at 11 am and then had to run a game on his own at 7 pm so I did some school work in the room and figured this blog thing out till 6 pm and then I helped Mark get all the planes and gear down to the gaming hall, which is where all my photos have come from so far. I waited around to see if Mark had any open seats and he was packed so I zipped over to this game I wanted to try out and found lots of open seats. So I gave them my $2 game token and sat down.
This game session was called "Monster Mash" and is a modified version of the 3.5 Miniatures game updated to 4E. The group running it is called Red Shirt Games. Each of us got three random monster cards and minis and our goal was to beat the crap out of each other till there was one monster standing. I got a Thrask, a Marileth, and Drizz't and Guenhwyvar. We each put our monsters in separate rooms and started moving. Luckily, I rolled pretty well and made a few good choices by going after a newbie's monsters. In the end, I was the last person standing against one of the guys who designed the game mod. Before we entered the final melee, the GM gave me a prize token for winning the game. Well, the other guy actually beat me by one point in the end but he couldn't with any prizes. I got a free pack of dice from GameScience. Cool.
Well, it's 11 pm and Mark isn't back yet. I think I'll head down and help him carry the stuff back. Tomorrow, I plan on playing a few more games. I also want to go to the Ennies at 7 pm.
Origins 2010 Thursday
Origins Report
Thursday June 24, 2010
Mark and I left Chicago at 7:15 a.m. CST and arrived in Columbus without incident at 2:15 pm EST. Wukas made all the arrangements and we ended up at the Hyatt Regency which is attached to the Columbus Convention Center so for the first time I am experiencing a game convention where I can actually take an elevator up to my room to drop off bags and take a rest before returning to the convention. Nice. Very nice.
Wukas helped run an Aerodrome game at 4 pm so I had time to get my badge and wander the Exhibition Hall, which doesn’t close till 6 pm, a vast improvement over GenCon’s 5 pm limit. I did a quick sweep of the floor and then had to stop at several booths to drop some coin. I’m a little worried that some of what is here will be gone by Saturday, so why wait? I picked up some 3.5 Eberron books and modules for half off, which was a sweet deal. I bought an old box of minis and then picked up some singles at $1-3 apiece. Finally, I picked up some Bela Sara stuff for Rebecca.
I ended up in the gaming area with some time to look through my bag of swag. It was full of some excellent stuff, including a complete Axis and Allies starter set, a Magic deck, and the annual Crystal Caste d6. This is Origins’ 35th anniversary so there are some cool t-shirts and commemorative pins I may buy tomorrow. I’m also tempted by a convention deal Reaper is running for any 45 paint colors, a carrying case, and a duffel bag for $99, which is a sweet deal. More than half my paints have dried up so I need to replenish and this could be a great way to do it.
Mark and I went back down after dinner and checked out the evening gaming that was going on. This is another new thing for me since I have never had the chance to be at the convention late into the night. There is a TON of gaming going on. Some of the miniature games being run are very cool. I will try to upload some photos along with this post. My iPhone was running low so I didn’t get to take as many pictures as I will tomorrow.
Overall, I have to say that my impression of the second half of Day One was a bit of a letdown. First, there doesn’t seem to be many people here and while that means lots of room to move around, it also means that the energy level on the exhibition floor seems very low. The other letdown is the Exhibition floor itself. I can’t believe how small it is! Granted, there are over a hundred vendors here, but it seems so small compared to GenCon! It is also missing some key companies, such as Wizards, WhizKids, Fantasy Flight Games, Privateer Press, Topps, Paizo, and Alea Tools. There are a few mom and pop resellers but not a lot. Crazy Egor’s is here but his prices seemed high. I did find Pirate packs for $1-2 apiece but haven’t bought any. Maybe the crowds on Friday and Saturday will change this impression.
Tonight, I made my first attempt at converting a 3.5 module to 4E using the Adventure Tools portion of DDI. It went pretty well and I now have all the monsters in a Word file ready to print. Now I need to convert the traps, skill checks, and treasure. Overall, I think the Adventure Tools will allow us to convert things pretty easily.
I want to attend a couple painting seminars if I can. I am also going to the Mayfair Games booth to learn how to play Settlers of Catan. I have not gone to the hall with the RPGA and may try to get in on a 1st level D&D game they are running throughout the convention. There is also a cool 3.5/4e D&D minis game being run by an independent group called “Monster Mash” that I may try. More soon!
My First Blog
I don't usually do this kind of thing but there are certainly moments when I want to spout off or keep my friends and family informed so here goes!
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